It's all very well making ground-breakingly good TV, but what happens when you have to follow it up?
This is the challenge faced by Half Man, Richard Gadd’s new limited series following his massive success with 2024's Baby Reindeer.
So how does the series, directed by Alexandra Brodski and Eshref Reybrouck, compare? Well, the two shows have their similarities and differences. Half Man isn't as funny as Baby Reindeer. Both are very dark. Both have characters at war with themselves. The question is, which is better? And how can Half Man hope to compete with a predecessor that earned so many viewers, armchair detectives, and awards?
What's Half Man about?
Set in Glasgow, Scotland, the six-episode BBC/HBO show jumps between two timelines. Each episode is framed by snapshots of a wedding in the present day. Niall (All of Us Strangers' Jamie Bell) is getting married. But the occasion is marred by the arrival of his step-brother Ruben (Gadd), who clearly has unfinished business with Niall that goes beyond wishing him all the best for the future.
Flashbacks slowly reveal why. The first three episodes take us back to the main characters' teenage years, when a bullied Niall (Mitchell Robertson) sees his life upended by Ruben (Stuart Campbell) being released from a young offender's institute and coming to live with him and his mother Lori (Neve McIntosh). Niall, a vulnerable teen struggling with his sexuality, is both obsessed with and afraid of Ruben — a tall boy with tattoos and a swagger, who seems to cause chaos wherever he goes.
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Half Man follows the highs and lows of their lives, from school and university into adulthood, watching as the two rely on, love, and at times despise one another, all while the series tries to unpack what it is that makes a person the way they are.
Stuart Campbell and Mitchell Robertson play a young Ruben and Niall. Credit: Anne Binckebanck / HBO
Half Man is a painful exploration of masculinity and sexuality
One of the main themes that runs throughout the show is Niall's struggle with his sexuality. He's clearly aware of his attraction to men from a young age, but it's just as clear that he can't accept it. Self-hatred and internalised homophobia means he hides that part of him away. However, he later visits dogging spots (public or semi-public places for sexual encounters) and chem sex parties, which puts him at risk from blackmailers and police.
As with Baby Reindeer, Gadd's writing in Half Man does an excellent job of subtly exploring the issues its main characters face. Niall and Ruben are both closed off in their own ways, but the show allows their actions to speak volumes even when they shut down, leaving room for the talented cast to complement the script with subtle actions and facial expressions. And in the rare moments when the characters do open up, the dialogue is filled with the gut-punches we've come to expect from Gadd.
"Why can't you just be happy with that side of yourself?" Niall's girlfriend Ava (Anjli Mohindra) asks him in one key moment. "It's the 21st century, nobody cares anymore."
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"That doesn't make me feel any better," responds Niall. "The fact that the world is progressing only adds to the problem because not only am I ashamed, I'm bloody irrational too."
When Ava tells Niall that "everyone who matters knows" about his sexuality, his response, delivered in a strangled yell by Bell, is painful to hear: "Because I don't know."
Niall struggles to come to terms with himself throughout "Half Man". Credit: Anne Binckebanck / HBO
Does Half Man have any weaknesses?
Despite only being around six hours long, Half Man crams a lot in. Possibly too much.
Moving from adolescence to adulthood, the show's time jump is a key narrative driver, making us want to keep watching to find out what exactly has led Niall and Ruben to a point of violence on Niall's wedding day — but it does also lead to a small problem in the story. This occurs in episode 4 when the timeline ticks forwards to Niall and Ruben's adult selves and the core cast changes from Robertson and Campbell to Bell and Gadd. It comes with a reversal in the main characters' fortunes that, when coupled with the skipped decade, feels jarring at first. As if maybe we've missed too much and are playing catch up.
Luckily, the feeling doesn't last. The time jump needs to happen for the sake of the story, and it's not long before Gadd and Bell's performances overcome what could have been a slight narrative misstep to pull us into Half Man's powerful second act.
So is Half Man as good as Baby Reindeer?
Half Man is Gadd's first foray into TV drama that's not directly based on real life. It's a test he passes. Half Man is gripping, emotional, complex, and upsetting, telling a story of masculinity and brotherhood that feels rooted in reality even though the story is fictional. It stumbles at times but never falls, and the strengths massively outweigh any negatives.
Is it as good as Baby Reindeer? No. But that would have been close to impossible. Baby Reindeer, with its unique subject matter, incredible blend of awkward comedy and extremely dark themes, and true story tagline, felt like a groundbreaking show. The kind of series that doesn't come along every year. Half Man walks a more well-trodden path. But it does what it does well, cementing Gadd as a storyteller with a lot more to offer.
Half Man airs on HBO on Thursday, Apr. 23 at 9 p.m. ET and is available to stream on HBO Max, with new episodes airing weekly. In the UK, the series is streaming on BBC iPlayer from Friday, Apr. 24, with new episodes airing weekly.